The shock McRae act that 'hurt' Pie on way out

Former Collingwood midfielder Taylor Adams has opened up on the “hurt” felt amidst his trade from the Pies to Sydney at the end of last season.

Adams heartbreakingly missed out on the Magpies’ four-point grand final victory over Brisbane in 2023, after injuring his hamstring on the eve of the finals, before being traded north.

The trade came as a shock to outsiders at the time, considering Adams had played in 23 matches last season.

The Swans midfielder has been open in recent months about how his trade impacted him and his family.

Back in December, Adams admitted he would never “get over” missing out on that elusive premiership medal.

Taylor Adams

“I don’t think I’ll ever fully get over that,” Adams said at the time.

Now, the 30-year-old has uncovered what really went on behind the scenes during his exit meeting from Collingwood.

“I was pretty disappointed by the feedback and the transparency that I got from Collingwood throughout the year,” Adams said on the Unlaced podcast.

He described feeling like his exit was pending, expressing that he sensed he was being distanced from the club he played 191 games for.

“In a nice way, they phased me out and it felt a lot like that,” Adams said.

Adams met with Sydney on the Wednesday following the grand final loss, before meeting with the Pies the next day.

He knew his time at Collingwood was dwindling, but was particularly “hurt” by something Magpies coach Craig McRae didn’t do.

“I then met with ‘Wrighty’ (footy boss Graham Wright) and ‘Fly’ (McRae) on the Thursday and Fly basically said, ‘nothing is going to really change next year, we think you do a great job in the role that you’re playing’, and I thought, to be honest, he was blowing wind up my ass,” Adams said.

“As I said before, I had to make a decision with my head and I actually didn’t hear from Fly at all again which hurt me.

“He should’ve called me and had the hard conversation but I can understand why he didn’t as he just won a flag and had a baby and there was a lot going on.

Adams is loving life in Sydney.

“I don’t have any hard feelings about it.”

Adams has played three of a possible seven games this season in the red and white, sidelined early with a knee injury.

He missed the Swans clash with the Pies in Opening Round, but has a chance to face his old foes again, when the sides meet in round 22 at the SCG.